Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk SEOUL — Don’t count on the Winter Olympics as the moment for rapprochement on the Korean peninsula. That message came through loud and clear in President Donald Trump’s first State of the Union address. “Our new American moment,” as Trump called this turbulent time in U.S. history, does not […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk Donald Trump doesn’t get it. He warns South Korea about “appeasement,” but who’s appeasing whom? Yes, President Moon Jae-In, hero of the candlelight protests that lofted him as the liberal darling into the presidency after the ouster of the conservative Park Geun-Hye, would love to go down in history […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk Donald Trump’s notion of “fire and fury” for North Korea inspires cheers, fears and jeers. Is he threatening the biblical “fire and brimstone,” or does his rhetoric more closely resemble Shakespeare’s “tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing”? Yes, there are those who think […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk WASHINGTON ― North Korea pops off another ICBM, and suddenly the U.S. media is full of talking heads offering views and solutions. They range from the extremes of annihilating North Korea’s nuclear and missile facilities to, “Oh, just sign a peace treaty and everything will be okay.” It’s hard […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk WASHINGTON — Americans are so fixated on the issues of healthcare and Russia that tightening sanctions on North Korea almost escapes notice. One minute the networks are vying with one another on what passes as “analysis” on President Trump’s efforts to replace Obamacare with Trumpcare, and the next they’re […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk Everybody’s talking about overtures to Pyongyang. Informal talks, secret talks, talks about talks – then, somewhere in everyone’s pet solution, comes the killer line: Pyongyang has to “freeze” its missile-and-nuclear program before real talking begins. It’s unlikely Kim Jong-Un will “freeze” anything, but here’s an idea. Remember that enormous […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk Would Kim Jong-Un mind giving Moon Jae-In a break? More than any other South Korean leader in years, Moon would like nothing better than to be the one to bring about North-South reconciliation. Wouldn’t it be great, Moon’s newly appointed former activists must be saying, if Kim Jong-Un invited […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk The drama of South Korean history opens a tumultuous new act with the election of a liberal labor lawyer who has promised both to bring about detente with North Korea and satisfy the demands of restive masses fed up with alleged rightist abuses. Whether Moon Jae-In will be able […]
by WorldTribune Staff, April 5, 2017 America is facing a breakdown in the free press which endangers the nation, say a group of news professionals who are taking action in response. The crisis came glaringly to the forefront during the 2016 presidential election and coverage of the ensuing Trump administration, according to the Internet site […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Donald Kirk The sight of the American Stars and Stripes among the Taegukgi held high by loyalists to Park Geun-Hye is a reminder of the historical depth of ties among mostly aging Koreans to the country that rescued the South from annihilation by North Korea and China in the Korean War. […]
